Day 8 - Hastings to Salisbury

We knew we had a big day ahead and a list of things to do...  We really wanted to see Bodiam Castle, which was a great success!  It was a glorious day.  There were quite a lot of people there and we enjoyed the visit.

There was a woman who was giving a bit of a talk to the captive audience about the kitchen, pantry and buttery for the castle.  She had some audience participation, including Peter looking after the pantry, another guy the buttery where they kept the ale and other grog and a group of 8-9 year olds acting as the walls between the kitchen and the main hall dividing the pantry and buttery.  You can go up the tower and the view from the top was worth the steep steps.  It is my idea of a medieval castle!

The photos show it all.

There were a couple of nice cars in the car park, including a Morris minor van!  I'd like one of these and a Mayfair mini.

We had lunch at the pub across the road...  A local beer and a sausage and mushroom roll!  Very nice, just hit the spot.

Then we had to drive to Salisbury.  We were going past Chawton, which has the house that Jane Austen lived in until just before her death in 1817.  The house is now open to visitors and so we had a look thru.  This is where the quilt that Jane and her sister and mother made is housed and on display. drive into Salisbury itself, gave the first view of the cathedral.  Funnily enough, the guide on duty has a daughter who lives in Australia, and is about to go to visit and will be spending 3 weeks travelling around Tasmania!

The weather had changed by then and we were traveling in some wet stuff ie. rain.  Chawton is a lovely little village and we found a couple of thatched cottages and older properties.

Coming into Salisbury, we got our first sighting of the Cathedral.  It really is a magnificent building.  We found our accommodation - Quidhampton Mill B&B.  we had the loft room and were met by Lisa and Martin our hosts.  It was a lovely room and in the morning, the sun rose and shone into our room just beautifully,  at their suggestion we had dinner at the Victoria and Albert Inn which was just down the road at Netherhampton.  A thatched building with low ceilings and beams.  So we had to be a bit careful.  Another local pint...  I seem to be drinking quite a lot of beer!

The bed was beautifully comfortable and we had a good night.